Luck
by The ULTIMATE catchphrase
Summary: War with the Giants is approaching,and CHB is going to need all the luck they can get.The Trojan Palladium can give them all that and more.But it's in Turkey,under a famous monument.The single most unlucky camper is on the job...and doomed to fail.
1. I get some good newsand some bad news

**Chapter one**

_**We Get Some Good News…And Some Bad News**_

**17 year old Micah Reed, preferably Reed, **was having a bad day. First off, he had woken up late and completely missed breakfast (no thanks to his half-siblings…he could've sworn his alarm clock was plugged in when he fell asleep), which was just a _fantastic_ way to start the day. Then it was off to archery, where he nearly killed his instructor, who just so _happened_ to be his girlfriend, Remy. _Wonderful._ Next was foot-racing, which he was forced to sit out of, for the _fourth time this week, _by the over-controlling Nymph that instructed the class, who 'cared about his well being!' or some other crap. _Great._ (So what if he had a slight limp? His knee was _fine.) _Then it was lunch, where some new unclaimed kid had spilled his food all over Reed. _Lovely._ He had to run all the way back to his cabin, change, and barely had enough time to shove some food into his mouth before lunch ended and the Nymphs threatened to sick the harpies on him if he didn't leave. Then it was sword-fighting. Since the accident, he couldn't even hold a sword; much less swing it without impaling himself or someone else on it. _Awesome._

So, he was understandably irritable as he walked towards the Bunker to help with the boat.

_I swear to gods, _he thought angrily, as he walked through the open door of the Bunker. _If one more bad thing happens today, I'm going to bite someone's head off._

As soon as he set foot through the entry way, Nyssa was up in his face, too much in Bunker mode to notice his out-of-character sullen expression.

"Oh good, you're here!" she shoved a handful of blueprints into his unprepared hands. He scrambled to catch them before they all clattered to the floor. "Those are some of the last minute preparations. We just need some help with design, and that's were you come in. Just do what you did yesterday, and it should be fine." she grinned at him, and he gave a strained smile in return. "Get it? Got it? Good." And with that, she flew past him and into the corner, where most of the Hephaestus kids were having one of their secret little meeting thingies that involved a bunch of science-y and mathematical crap that made his brain hurt. They were currently debating on the shape of the celestial bronze plates on the hull of the ship. Reed didn't understand why it mattered.

He plunked down in the seat next to his best friend, Trent Baker, with an over dramatic sigh. Trent looked up from the blueprint he had been scribbling away at. Trent, being the computer wiz he is, had been put in charge of the security and navigation systems. He claimed he was making his final notes on the systems before he put them into action, but Reed suspected he was just adding a bunch of badass add-ons and what-not, just to make things interesting.

"Why the dear-gods-I-hate-my-life sigh?" he inquired. His green eyes were bright from working on the systems all day, and his auburn hair was as untidy as ever. "Had a bad day?"

Reed grunted and moodily unraveled a blue-print of the side of the ship, where he had just started making the intricate designs on each panel. "Understatement of the century, man," he muttered under his breath, tapping his newly-sharpened pencil on the table. Trent laughed good-naturedly, amused by his best friend's irritable behavior.

"So," Reed said, hastily trying to change the subject. "Added anything new to the systems?" He regretted it the moment it was out of his mouth. Trent's eyes lit up, and he went into full-out tech-nerd mode. Reed knew that once Trent began talking, there was no way to shut him up.

"Well…" Trent started, and Reed knew he was doomed.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*

Reed walked out of the Bunker several hours later, his head swimming. The group of Hephaestus kids debating about the plates had somehow managed to drag him into the argument, asking him his opinion. He'd somehow managed to convince them all to agree on the sharper, more armor-looking plates, with a lot of sweat and thinking and pondering and arguing on his part. And, of course, they were debating again the second he walked away, this time on the designs for bunks below deck. At this point, Reed decided he was done with the blueprints for the day, and left Trent to deal with his arguing siblings. He had Greek next with Annabeth. Since Percy disappeared, she barely even taught them anything. She just stared off over the lake, her expression pained. Reed felt really sorry for her, but he knew if he said that, she'd run him through with his own knife.

As he neared the spot beside the lake, a pair of arms wrapped themselves around his torso. He tensed, but when a face pressed into his back, and a soft, muffled voice muttered, "Micah! _Perché devi__essere__così alto__?"_ he knew instantly who it was. His bad mood melted instantly.

He twisted his head around, smiling, to see Remy's beautiful face smiling back at him. She came around beside him and slipped her hand in his. Reed, at 6'2", towered above her 5'6" frame by a good six inches, so he had to bend down to peck her cheek.

"You know I hate it when you speak Italian and I have no idea what you said," he said teasingly. She laughed lightly.

"_Ascolta__!__" _she chided. Reed had learned enough to know she meant "listen". "I said, 'why must you be so tall'," she told him, her English still accented, even after five years of living in America. She grinned cheekily. "You know, it would do you good to learn some Italian." Reed made a face.

"Oh come on, I'm already learning Greek, what do want from me?" he grinned. "Speaking of Greek, I've got that next. I'm assuming you do as well?" She nodded, smiling a sly smile she rarely used.

"Do try not to impale me on your textbook. I think the arrow was effective enough," She smiled as Reed flushed, holding up the bandage on her arm for him to see.

"Remy, I'm really sorry—"

"It's fine, it's fine," she waved off his apology. "What, are you the only one in this relationship who's allowed to make the jokes?" she raised an eyebrow, and Reed couldn't help but laugh.

"Well…" he started, and she smacked his arm lightly. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding."

They arrived at Greek a few minutes late (Annabeth was smart enough to figure out why, Reed knew that much). Maybe it was just Reed, but the daughter of Athena looked more grim than usual. He blonde curls were a mess, her face was pale, and her mouth was set in a grim line. Her eyes narrowed when she saw the couple arrive and sit down, and her mouth quirked.

"So nice of you to join us," she drawled, and threw them both a textbook. "Page 150." Reed frowned and flipped through the pages. He spent the remainder of class staring off into space, barely listening as class went on. At the end of class, Annabeth caught his arms as he was walking away with Remy. _Oh gods, _he thought, _she's going to kill me. I'm going to die. Remy! Tell my mother I love her!_

"Micah, can I speak to you for a second?" Reed felt the urge to correct her (only Remy could call him that!), but resisted. The look on her face was grim and sad, mixed with a twinge of wistfulness in her eyes. Something was wrong. He nodded.

"Whatever,"

She pulled him over to the side with a quick wave at Remy.

"There's a War Council after dinner, okay?" she told him. "Be there, and don't be late."

He blinked.

"A War Council? Why do I have to be there? I'm not a head councilor."

Annabeth chewed her bottom lip, looking anxious. "Something, er…came up, okay? Chiron asked for your presence." Then she hastily turned away. "I've got another class to teach." She mumbled, and then hurried away.

Reed stared after her, convinced there was definitely something she wasn't telling him. And from the looks of it, it wasn't anything good.

_Fan-freaking-tastic._

*.*.*.*.*.*.*

"What was all that about?" Remy asked, as they walked back towards the cabins.

"Um…" Reed debated on whether he should tell her or not. "I was told to come to the War Council tonight."

"War Council?" she echoed, her eyebrows furrowed. "What for?"

Reed worried at the hem of his t-shirt. "She didn't tell me." He mumbled. Remy pursed her lips, looking worried.

"It might be something about the boat," she suggested, "I mean, you are on the Design Team, no?"

"Uh, yeah. Yeah, It's probably just that," But he didn't believe it.

After he walked Remy to her cabin, he made his way down the line to his own cabin. As he stood on the porch, he looked his cabin over. It was old and well-worn, that was for sure. The brown paint was peeling and discolored, and the wood was worn-down and warped.

"Man," he muttered to himself, as he yanked open the squeaky door. "This place could really use a paint job." Maybe he would talk to Chiron about it at the War Council.

It was dinner prep time at this point, and the whole cabin was bustling around, getting ready and showering and what not. Reed kicked off his shoes and shoved them in his cubby in the foyer. Glancing around the cabin, he spotted his half-sister Ella coming out of the bathroom, her hair wet, a towel in her hands.

"Hey Ells!" he called from across the room. "Any open showers?"

"Yeah, two. Better hurry though. They fill up fast!" she called back over her shoulder, half-out the door to hang her towel on the porch railing.

"Sweet." He peeled off his shirt, and then rummaged through his trunk. He remembered that he had hung it the night before, and left it out there. "Hey, can you grab my towel? It's the one with the rubber duckie on it!" he heard her laugh as she came through the door. She threw him his towel.

"Real manly, Reed!" she teased, walking over to the mirrors. She grabbed her hair dryer from the cabinet, and then searched for a place to plug it in.

"You know it!" he called as he stepped into the bathroom. The air was hot and humid, the tile under his feet slick with water. There was only one shower left. He took a quick shower, changed clothes, and ran a brush through his shaggy brown hair before Ella even finished drying her hair.

"Dang," She muttered, giving up on her stubborn hair and pulling it into a sloppy bun on top of her head. "How do you do that?" She sat down on her bed and began pulling her converse on her feet.

Reed grinned, pulling his knee brace up through his jeans. In retrospect, he probably should've done that first. "Oh, Ella, that's easy. I'm magical!"

Ella raised an eyebrow, her mouth quirked to one side. "Yeah, okay. Whatever floats your boat." They both laughed.

30 minutes later, the whole of the Hermes Cabin filed into the dining pavilion, pushing and shoving and joking around. The dining hall was already relatively full, so the nymphs had already brought out heaping plates of food. It was a Tuesday, so tonight, they had brisket and rolls. They sat down at their less-crowded-but-still-uncomfortably-squished table and began to fill there plates. Once all the cabins had taken a seat, Chiron came to the front of the stage and stomped his hoof. The sound echoed throughout the hall, and everyone fell silent almost immediately.

"Hello, campers," Chiron greeted them, a goblet in his hands. "Before we make our toast, I have a few announcements to make." He paused. "First of all, I am happy to inform you all that construction on the Argo II is nearly complete! Let us give a big round of applause for the Hephaestus cabin, who worked countless hours to accomplish this goal!" The room burst into applause, and Reed knew what they were all thinking, because he was thinking it too. The sooner the Argo is done, the sooner they have their unofficial leader, Percy Jackson, back.

Leo Valdez stood up from his table, grinning the crazy, sleep-deprived grin that all the Hephaestus kids had been sporting lately.

"We didn't do all the work," he said modestly. "Thanks to all of you, we'll be on our way in no time at all!" more applause scattered across the pavilion. "We should be ready to roll in another week or two!" There was more applause. Leo gave a comical bow and sat down.

"Thank you, Hephaestus cabin," Chiron said, beaming. Then his face hardened, as did his tone. "Second, we have an emergency War Council tonight before campfire. I expect all cabin councilors to be there, as well as…" he faltered, and glanced in Reed's direction. Reed knew what was coming instantly. "…as well as Micah Reed." All eyes swiveled from Chiron to him. Whispering broke out among the tables and Reed was pretty sure the subject of their conversations was him. Chiron stomped his hoof again, and the pavilion reluctantly fell silent once more.

"And last, the Chariot races have been postponed to next Thursday, due to a rather messy accident on the track." There was a chorus of annoyed grumbles. "And now, for the toast," He raised his goblet. "Everyone, please raise your goblet." Everyone followed his lead. "For the gods!" he declared.

"For the gods!" the campers echoed. They all took a swig from their goblets (the Stolls started a chugging contest) and stood to make their sacrifice to the gods. Even with the gods ignoring them, Reed didn't think skipping their sacrifices would please them so much. _They're like grouchy kindergarteners with anger management issues,_ he thought as he stood in line to make his sacrifice. Thunder boomed in the distance, and Reed muttered a barely audible apology. He shoved a particularly plump cluster of grapes into the brazier. _To Hermes._ The smell of burgers on a grill wafted up, and as he turned away, he could've sworn he saw his father's face in the fire, staring at him sadly.

The Hermes table was as loud as it always was, full of loud jokes, raucous laughter, and the small-scale food fights that break out every few seconds. But there was a certain tenseness under all of the usual light-hearted childishness. Reed knew they were all wondering why he was wanted at the meeting, and whether it was a good or bad thing. So, of course, Reed joined in the food-fights and laughter, trying to make it seem like it didn't matter to him one way or another.

Needless to say, when he arrived at the big house for the meeting, his face and shirt were splattered with stains and pieces of foods. His hair was sticking up with the soda Connor Stoll had dumped over his head. Speaking of the Stolls, the wacky duo were on either side of him, each covered in the same stains, their hair sticking up with the soda he had spilled on them. All three were cracking up.

"Ech…" Reed groaned, wiping a trickling of orange soda from his eye with his sleeve. "I can't believe you did that!" The Stolls snickered.

"You gotta admit," Travis gasped, wiping his own eyes. "It was pretty damn funny!"

"That it was, my dear brother, that it was," Reed attempted to run a hand through his sticky hair. "My gods!" he gasped, laughing hysterically all over again. "I seriously think my hand is stuck in my _hair!_" They all doubled over laughing, and Connor comically yanked Reed's arm from his hair. Reed's grin faltered slightly. _Good thing that was my right arm,_ Reed thought, but he didn't say anything.

They took their seats on the right side of the ping pong table, with everyone's eyes on them, their expressions varying from amusement to annoyance. Leo's eyes widened, and he grinned at them.

"What the heck happened to you guys? Did you lose a fight with your dinner and lose, or something?"

"The answer is quite simple, actually." he pointed an accusing finger at Connor. "It was him! Slay the beast!" He launched himself at Connor. They grappled weakly, Reed being careful not to jar his left shoulder, laughing.

"Noooooo!" Connor wailed in a high pitched voice. Reed heard Will Solace mutter, "You just _had _to ask, Leo."

"Ahem," a voice said from the head of the table. Connor and Reed froze, turning their heads towards the speaker. Chiron sat at the head of the table in his sneaky little magical wheel-chair, amusement written all over his face. Reed gave a sheepish smile. "If you two are quite done," he drawled, his mouth quirked. "The meeting is ready to begin." Connor and Reed darted back to their seats. Connor began smoothing down his hair so it was jelled back, and Reed pretended to straighten an imaginary tie.

Chiron cleared his throat again, before beginning in a grave tone that matched his now grim expression. "I assume you are all wondering why you have been called here," Reed dropped the funny business immediately, as did the Stolls, and sat forward, his eyes wide.

"As you know, a war with the Giants is drawing close," The campers all nodded, wondering where he was going with this. "And, as you know, the odds of us coming out victorious are very slim." A grim silence set upon the room like an elephant, mostly because they all knew he was right.

"We are going to need all the luck we can get. And thankfully, we have a discovered a way to help us with that task." There was a stunned silence.

Finally, Leo broke the silence. "What is it?" For once, all humor was gone form his voice. Murmurs of agreement broke out amongst the head councilors. Annabeth sat next to Chiron, he jaw working, her grey eyes anxious.

"The Palladium of Troy," there were a few gasps, but for the most part the announcement was met with blank stares. "As some of you might know, it was a small statue of Pallas, made by Athena in remorse for his death. It brought luck and victory to Troy as long as it remained inside the city's walls. It was stolen from the city by Odysseus and Diomedes, so that the Greeks could enter the city." He paused, looking around the room. "Odysseus tried to kill Diomedes to gain the glory, but Diomedes realized, and tied Odysseus up, but did not punish him. Diomedes fled with the Palladium to Rome. It is said to be buried under the Column of Constantine."

Something in Reed's head clicked, and he knew why he was here. He gulped. "So…um, sounds like we need a quest."

Chiron nodded grimly. "We received a prophecy from our oracle, Rachel Dare, earlier today." He turned to Reed, his expression a little sad. "And that, Micah, is where you come in.

**OH MY GOD. Seven whole pages. It's a new record! Anyway, a new story I shouldn't be starting, but I'm going to anyway. I'm only writing it on weekends. But it actually has a fully planned-out plot! Aren't you proud of me? It's a story with all my OC's. **

**Trent Baker© ~Night-faery on Deviantart. She has an account here, BTW, though I forgot what it is. If you know it, give her some love!**

**Ella, Reed and Remy© the ULTIMATE Catchphrase**

**With love, **

**TUC**


	2. Explanations

**Chapter 2**

_**Explanations**_

**Shocked silence spread through the room** like a wildfire. Everyone's eyes swiveled to him, gauging his reaction. Reed let out a breath. Why, oh why did he have to be right _all the freaking time? _ Swallowing down his fear, he tried to arrange his features into a confident smile. All that came was a grimace. Reed wished that he was alone, so he could quietly have a mental breakdown.

"Oh…er…a….quest?" he muttered slowly. He swallowed hard, tapping his fingers against the table. Everyone's eyes were on him, and he hated it. He didn't want their freaking pity. Most of them looked like they were already picking his coffin.

Chiron's eyes softened, the sadness deepening. "Yes, my boy. A quest to Rome, or, more accurately, what used to be Rome, to retrieve the Trojan Palladium. The prophecy—"

At this moment, the door burst open, cutting the old centaur off. A frazzled Rachel Elizabeth Dare scrambled in, panting, and plopped down in the chair next to Annabeth.

"Gods, sorry I'm late. There was this angry nymph and…" she ran a hand through her hair, a blush creeping up her freckled cheeks. "Er…It's a long story…Um, what'd I miss?"

"Ah," Chiron said, looking a tad relieved that he would not be the bearer of such bad news. "Rachel, you're just in time." He gestured to the campers situated around the table. "Would you please tell us your prophecy?" Rachel turned a ghostly white, and her mouth shrank into a thin line.

"With…with all of them here?" she whispered, her head tilted, her eyes a little horrified.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Chiron turned, addressing all the head councilors. "I think it would be best if you all left. The meeting will resume shortly." There was some grumbling, before all of them got up and filed out of the room, throwing him sad looks over their shoulders. He grit his teeth.

"The floor is all yours, Rachel." Chiron told her, spreading his arms.

"Oh…uh, yeah," she took a deep breath. "I'm warning you Reed…it doesn't bode well." Reed practically choked on her look of pity. "Here goes:

_The broken traveler to the old of Rome_

_Far off the path, to the owl's home_

_A forgotten ghost joins the enemy's band_

_And all will be lost by thievery's hand"_

Reed repeated the words over and over in his mind. Despite the horrible things the prophecy entailed, it was the first line that really stuck with him. _The broken traveler. _Of _course_ they would think it was him. They were probably right of course, but it still stung.

"Well that's…depressing," he wasn't sure whether he said that out loud or not.

It took him a while to realize that Chiron had just said something, and that both of them were staring at him expectantly.

"I'm sorry, what?" he asked, shaking his head as if to clear it.

"I asked if you accept the quest." He repeated patiently. Reed worked his jaw, his mind running at a million miles an hour. He desperately wanted to just say no and be done with it, but he knew that wasn't an option. Ella always said that he could never resist a challenge. She had also told him that would be the end of him. Maybe she was right.

"I…" sweat trickled down his neck, mixing with sticky soda syrup. "I…I accept," he said slowly. Chiron smiled, though it didn't reach his eyes.

"Good," Chiron said. "You'll need to pick some companions. Given the wording of the prophecy, I would think one of them needs to be a child of Athena. Do you have anyone in mind?"

Reed thought for a moment, shuffling through the faces of people who knew. A slow smile crept across his face, one that no one would see again for quite some time.

"Yeah, I do actually,"

*.*.*.*.*

**16 year old Quincy Phillips, preferably Quinn, **was having a strangely good day. That was, of course, until her second, slightly less infuriating best friend, Micah Reed, barged through her cabin door, not even bothering to knock. Quinn had been curled up on her bed with her favorite book, enjoying what little free-time she was given today. When the door had suddenly burst open, she had instinctively thrown her book at the intruder. There was a loud thud and a pained grunt as the heavy hardback slammed into the offending person.

"Jesus Christ, Quinn!" the person gasped, and Quinn knew instantly who it was. Frankly, she felt little remorse. "Are you kidding me? Right in the gut! Sometimes, I hate your aim." Quinn just smirked in reply, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. Reed stood in the doorway, looking freshly showered, rubbing his stomach gingerly and holding her book in his other hand.

"Any reason you barged into my cabin unannounced?" She drawled lazily, one eyebrow arched. All traces of humor vanished from his face, and his expression hardened. When it came to Reed that was never a good sign. Quinn sat forward, narrowing her eyes.

"Yes, actually," he said quietly, his mouth a flat line. Was it just the lighting, or did he look unusually pale?

"I…I was…um…" he stuttered. The corner of Quinn's twitched up. She couldn't help it.

"Spit it out," she told him. Reed swallowed, alternating wringing his hands and pulling at the holes in his doodle cover jeans.

"I was issued a quest," He told her. Her eyes widened almost comically. She stood from her seat.

"I'm sorry, _what?"_ she sputtered, looking up at him. It infuriated her how short she was.

"I got a quest, to find some statue thingy for the camp," he said solemnly. Reed was _never_ solemn. "And…" he trailed off, uncertain.

"And…" she prompted, gesturing with her hands.

"And, I want you to go on it with me,"

She blanched.

"You…want me…to go on a….quest, with you?" she asked slowly. He nodded. Quinn straightened, swallowing down her apprehension. She stood on her tippy toes and pulled her emergency bag off of a shelf, and began rushing around the room, throwing more things into it.

"Well, then," she said briskly, throwing another set of batteries in. "We better get packed, eh? When are we leaving?" It was Reed's turn to look stupid.

"That's…that's it? You're agreeing that easily?" he sputtered, looking completely dumbstruck. She arched an eyebrow.

"That's what you wanted, right? If you want me to fight with you about it, I'd certainly be happy to. Let me start by telling you you're a big…" she trailed off at the look on his face. She sighed exasperatedly, throwing her pack down on the bed. "Look, idiot. Believe it or not, I actually think of you as my _friend._ Shocking, isn't it? And thus, I'm going on this quest with you, to make sure you don't get yourself killed, if anything. That would be terribly inconvenient. Now, it appears I've been talking copious amounts, and you've been unnaturally serious, so we better get going before the world explodes. I suggest first thing tomorrow." Reed's mouth twitched into a hesitant half-smile, which was a start.

"Sounds good, Quinny," He said, and Quinn winced at the use of that ridiculous nickname. He turned to leave, and then stopped. He looked over his shoulder, his expression soft.

"Thanks," was all he said, before walking down the path, toward the Hephaestus cabin.

*.*.*.*.*

**17 year old Trent Baker, just Trent, **had a horrible headache. His eyes swam with all the equations and crap that he had to deal with today. He scrubbed a hand over his face. Tomorrow, he would start actually _building _the systems, which, as much as he loved that kind of stuff, he was seriously dreading. He sat on his bunk in his cabin, alone. The rest of his siblings were still at the bunker, just like they were every night. He had barely managed to slip away.

A soft knock on the door returned his from his musings.

"Come in," he called. The door creaked slowly opens, and Reed stepped into the room. He leaned lazily against the doorpost, his arms folded.

"Hey," he said. His eyes darted around the room, craning his neck to look through his blind spots, before turning back to Trent. "You alone, dude?"

Trent nodded, a little thrown by his friend's strange behavior.

"Good," Reed murmured, half to himself, and pushed off of the doorframe, elbowing the door closed behind him. "So…you remember that meeting I got called to?"

Trent nodded slowly, wondering where he was going with this. "Yeah…what about it?"

"I…" his eyes were bright with nerves, and his hands fiddled with the hem of his shirt absently. His shoulders sagged. "I got issued a quest. A very dangerous quest, actually, to find some stupid statue before the giants do."

Trent almost didn't process his words.

"You got called to a _quest? _Like, with a prophecy and everything?" he asked, his eyes wide, his headache forgotten. Reed winced.

"That's usually how it works," he muttered. There was yawning moment of silence. Trent tapped his fingers against his mattress.

"I obviously need two companions…and I already asked Quinn so…" he laughed without humor. "I guess you can figure out why I'm here."

He was right. Something in Trent's mind clicked. "You want me to go on this highly dangerous quest with you." It wasn't a question.

"Uh, yeah. So…?" he trailed off, searching his friend's face. He obviously thought Trent was going to refuse, or something.

"Okay," Trent said, resisting the urge to laugh at how relieved Reed seemed. He stood up and started throwing some stuff into a bag. "We're leaving first thing tomorrow, right?" He paused. "I don't suppose your going to share the prophecy with me, yet?" Reed bit his lip.

"Sorry, dude. Not yet. I'm afraid it you hear it, you're not gonna want to go on this quest," Trent folded his jacket and shoved it into his backpack.

"Well, that's reassuring," the green-eyed boy muttered under his breath.

"Yeah, well, that's life," he rubbed the back of his neck. "Thank, man. Really," he glanced at the door. "Sorry, but I gotta go. I need to talk to Remy…" Trent stopped packing.

"You haven't told her you're going on a death mission?" _that I'm going on as well. _ He crossed the room to smack his slightly shorter friend lightly upside the head. "You idiot! Go! Now!"

Reed started out the door, then stopped. Trent could almost his smirk. _Not good._

"Oh look…here come Marcie," he waved at the brown-haired girl, walking out towards the infirmary. Trent's eyes widened. Now he had to…

"_Bonjour, _Trent," she greeted, flashing a brilliant smile that made his heart flutter. "What was Reed doing here?" Trent's smile melted.

_Oh, dear gods…_

*.*.*.*.*

Reed padded down to the infirmary, hoping that Remy was still there. Sure enough, he spotted her leaning over a newer camper, who had recently broken her arm on the rock wall. When she saw him in the doorway, her face lit up.

"_Ciao,_ Reed," She grinned at him, putting down a square of ambrosia she had let the camper nibble on. "_Sarò subito da te. _I'll be right with you." Reed gave a faint smile as he leaned against the wall. Remy finished wrapping the bandage around the girl's arm.

"There we go, all better," she smiled. "Now, be sure not to do much physical activity, and come back daily." She patted the girl's cheek affectionately. "All right,_arrivederci._" She waved as the girl jumped up and bounced out of the room, careful not to jar her arm.

"Let's hope she listens better than I do," He said, crossing the room to put his arms around Remy. She looped her arms around his neck, standing on her toes, looking up at him through her long dark lashes.

"Reed, everyone listens better than you," she murmured lightly, her lips almost brushing his.

"Ouch. That really wounds me, Remy," he drawled. She giggled and moved a little closer to him.

"Well, I apologize," she whispered, and then closed the distance between them. When they broke apart, Remy smiled, a smile Reed tried to return.

"So, are you here for me to check your shoulder?" she asked him. Reed let go of her.

"Uh, yeah." He lied, tapping his fingers against his legs. Remy drifted over to a comfy looking chair and patted the seat, gesturing for him to sit down. He did, peeling his shirt off to expose his banadaged shoudler. Her breath hitched slightly, and Reed smirked.

"You sure you didn't just wanted to see me shirtless?" he asked cheekily, momentairly forgetting why he was here in the first place. "If that was all you wanted, all you had to do was ask." Remy wacked his good shoulder lightly, laughing. Her fingers hovered over his skin, before moving toward the other shoulder. She began slowly peeling the banadage off, fliching every time Reed winced. Blood spattered the bright white cotton of the bandage, and Remy pursed her lips, looking concerned and reproachful at the same time.

"Looks like the wound has opened up some again," she sighed, getting a cloth to clean the blood from the gash. "Really, Reed, you should start listening to your doctor. You could really mess up your shoulder, even more so." Reed winced as the cloth touched his shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he muttered, twidling his thumbs. Remy sighed.

"I'm going to drip some nectar on it, _tutto bene_?" she took out a canteen from a cabinet, and dribbled a few drops into the wounds. He nearly finched every time a drop hit. Remy screwed the cap back on and turned to put the canteen away. It was then Reed mustered up enough courage to tell her,

"I'm going on a quest, Remy" he blurted, not beating around the bush. "That's...that's why they called me. To tell me." Remy fronze mid-step. The canteen dropped from her hand hitting the floor and spilling the godly liquid every where.

"A...quest?" she whispered, still not looking at him. "A quest? _Dagli dei, Reed!"_ her voice rose, which hardly ever happens, and she whipped around. "_Sei__fuori di testa__?_"

"No Remy, I'm not out of my mind!" he shouted. His temper rose, and he stood abruptly from his chair. "It's a quest, Remy! I'm perfectly capable of—"

"No you're not! _Dei__buoni,_ why won't you _listen?_ You're injured Reed! You can barely even run right, or hold a sword!" Then her eyes widened, as if she was just realizing what she had said. "Oh, no...Reed, I'm so sorry—"

"No. You know what, I'm sorry," his voice was deadly calm, laced with controlled fury and hurt. "I'm sorry I'm so _incompetent._ But I'm going on this quest whether you like it or not, and if I'm killed, then so be it. But I'm _going _Remy, and there's nothing you can do about it." He slapped a bandage on his shoulder and tugged his shirt on. "Don't bother saying goodbye." And with that final barb, he stormed out of the infirmary.

"Reed! I'm sorry! Come back!" she sobbed from the doorway, her eyes streaming with tears.

He barely heard her.

**YAY! Oooh...are Reed and Remy...-le gasp- breaking up? You'll have to read...**

**SIX AND A HALF PAGES! Wowza. Imma go to bed now...it's nearly midnight. Sorry for mistakes, my spell check had a mental breakdown DX. Go to google translate for translations...cause I'm too tired to list them...**

**With love.**

**TUC**


	3. We're Off To Our Deaths

**Chapter Three**

_**We're off…to our deaths**_

**Needless to say, Reed didn't go **to the campfire that evening. He knew his siblings were probably worried, but frankly, he was so angry he could hardly see straight. He knew that he was overreacting, and that everything Remy had said was true, but she had seriously damaged his already wounded pride.

He made a couple more Iris messages. Including his mom. It took a while to explain it to her, and she freaked out worse than Remy did. He finally had to disconnect when she started crying. He couldn't take it anymore. He was already half-asleep, the curtain to his bed pulled, when his siblings filed in for the night. Reed heard them whispering quietly to each other. He didn't even have to listen to know the subject of their conversations. Was he alright? What was the prophecy? When was he leaving? Who was he taking with him?

He must've drifted all the way off, because suddenly, Quinn was shaking him awake. All the lights were out, and his siblings were splayed out on their beds, dead asleep.

"Wake up, you idiot," she hissed. Her blonde hair was tied up, and an uncharacteristic purple and pink bag was slung over one shoulder. She was wearing jeans and an old sweatshirt. He rubbed his eyes and forced himself to think clearly.

"Wha…?" he muttered intelligently, his eyes threatening to flutter closed. She made an impatient noise, and, in a very Quinn-like act, slapped him across the face. Hard. Reed jerked upward with a yelp, only to smack his head of the top of his bunk. He fell back on his pillow, groaning. Quinn raised an eyebrow.

"Well, that was entertaining," she drawled, sitting lazily on the floor. Reed glared at her, his head spinning.

"Was that really necessary?" He growled, rubbing his head gingerly. She shook her head.

"Not at all. But I did it anyway," she gave him that infuriating smirk and then stood. "Grab your bag. It's time to go."

"Wha…? What….what time is it?"

"Hmm…About 4:00 am."

"4:00 am? Quinn, when I agreed to first thing in the morning, I didn't mean _first thing in the morning!" _ Quinn shrugged indifferently, like _and your point is…?_

"You're awake now."

"You…you are infuriating," He told her. He stood and stretched, yawning, and then got his things together. Quinn made a comment on every little thing he had packed. Ten minutes later, the two out the door.

"Reed," He froze as his name was called. Was it Remy? He turned around, to see Ella standing in the door way of the Hermes cabin, the rest of his siblings packed behind her. Her arms were crossed, her eyes stern.

"Now, now," she reprimanded. "You weren't going to leave without saying goodbye, were you?" Then her expression softened, and the whole of the cabin surged forward like a giant wave. They enveloped him in a huge group hug, squishing together. He laughed and let them squeeze the life out of him. Quinn stood awkwardly at the edge, until Connor grabbed her wrist and pulled her into the void.

"Not to be a downer…" Quinn piped up, her voice muffled. "Actually, I do mean to be a downer, because I'm currently suffocating. We've got to get Trent and go." The Hermes cabin broke into a chorus of grumbles, before letting the questers out of the death hug. Ella clapped Reed on his back.

"Stay safe, big brother," she said, and Reed noticed she was blinking profusely. "Or I might have to kill you." She gave him one last, extremely tight hug (he ignored the stab of pain in his shoulder) and turned away with the rest of the cabin, sniffling.

"Looks like somebody's loved," Quinn snorted. "Didn't get that much of goodbye from the Athena's." Reed sighed.

"It's not that I'm loved," he muttered, still not in the mood to be cheered by his cabin's antics. "It's just that they all think I'm gonna get myself killed out there."

"Then they obviously doubt my skills," she said irritably, her arms crossed. "I'm more than capable of keeping your stupidity at bay."

"Thanks, Quinn. Really, you're a great friend."

"I know. You're incredibly lucky."

They arrived at the Hephaestus Cabin several moments later. Quinn had barely even opened the door, before someone yanked it violently the rest of the way. Trent stood in the door way, wearing worn jeans and a blue jacket over his camp shirt. His laptop bag was slung over his shoulder.

"Hey," Trent said, looking wide awake. "Couldn't sleep all night…been up for hours." He laughed, sporting that crazed smile, just like the rest of his cabin.

Quinn took in his ruffled and sleepless appearance and sighed. "Lovely, Trent. Just lovely." Trent shrugged.

"Whatever. We better get going, right?" He grinned, and then started off running down the hill. Quinn grunted.

"This is gonna be a long quest…" she muttered. Reed smirked.

"What was your first clue?" he retorted. Quinn rolled her eyes, and then turned in the direction of where Trent had gone.

"Slow down, you idiot!" she yelled, and then jogged down the hill after him. Reed sighed. Giving one last glance at the cabins. , he wondered if he'd ever see them again. And what about Ella? Brianna? Marcie? …_Remy? _He mentally kicked himself for think about her. Scraping together his last strands of resolve, he began walking down the hill.

"Reed! _Hurry UP!"_

"I'm Coming Quinn! No need to get your panties in a twist."

"…Screw you."

*.*.*.*.*.*

**Chiron was waiting for them at **the bottom of Half-Blood Hill. He nodded at the trio.

"Ah, there you are. Argus is here to take you all to the Airport. Your flight to Turkey is—"

"I'm sorry, did you just say _Turkey? _Our quest is in _Turkey?"_ Quinn sputtered. Trent's mouth hung open. Reed winced, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Oh yeah…did I forget to mention that part?"

"Yeah, dude. I think it might've slipped your mind…" Trent muttered, his eyes wide. Quinn glared at Reed.

"Thank you so much for the notice," she said, sarcasm dripping off of every word. She sighed. "Hello, 10 hour flight," she glanced at Trent. "At least you can sleep,"

"Sleep?" -he yawned hugely, which ruined his point. He chose to ignore Quinn's raised eyebrow- "Who needs sleep?"

"Humans," Quinn deadpanned. "Sleep is essential to the-"

"Gods, Quinn," Reed moaned, cutting off her nerd tirade. "It's four in the morning, we're off to our deaths, and my girlfriend and I are bordering on a break-up. Please, for the love of Zeus, spare us your big nerd talk." Quinn glared at him, about to retort, when Chiron pointedly cleared his throat.

"Sorry to interrupt your witty banter," He said wryly." But I'm afraid you must be going if you are to make your flight. I'm sorry to say, but once you are in Turkey, we can do no more for you." The three nodded solemnly, and the mood dampened considerably.

"Also," Chiron went on, "We were not able to get you a flight straight to Istanbul. You will stop briefly in Spain. The flight gets off at a nearby city. How you get to Istanbul is up to you." The three nodded again, and Reed could practically see the wheels turning inside the daughter of Athena's head.

A car horn honked, and a white van marked _Delphi Strawberries _was parked impatiently nearby. Chiron sighed.

"I believe it is time you get going." He said. "I trust you have everything you need?" The all mumbled a reply. "Good." He patted Reed lightly on the back. "You'll do fine, my boy." Reed muttered his thanks, and the three of them shuffled the car. Before getting in the car, Reed glanced at the hill. Was Remy really not coming to say goodbye? Was she that set on not having him go on this quest? Anger filled him, and he slammed the car door shut.

"Drive," he ordered impatiently, his arms crossed, the look on his face uncharacteristically Quinn-like. Argus gave him a hard glare with all his eyes (which was creepy), and with an offended sniff, drove off.

Unfortunately, as the car drove away, Reed failed to see the pajama-clad, curly haired figure running down the hill, just a minute too late.

*.*.*.*.*.*

**The car ride to the air port was stiff and silent.** Trent made several attempts to lighten the mood (which he never thought he'd have to do while Reed was around), but was always met by little reaction. Reed sat with his arms crossed, eyes closed, his head leaning against the window. He seemed completely miserable, and it killed Trent to see his friend this way. Ever since the crash, Reed had started to lose his cheerful, goofy demeanor, which was understandable.

Quinn, on the other hand, seemed perfectly content and infuriatingly calm. She had taken out a book form her bag and currently had her nose in it. That girl was probably the most anger-inducing human being on this planet. And Trent was the kind of person that got along with everybody. But Trent understood why Reed invited her on this quest, and respected that Reed had found some quality in the blonde worth being her friend for.

Trent himself was starting to feel the long, sleepless nights in the bunker catching up to him. He practically choked on his yawns on many accounts, not wanting to give Quinn the satisfaction. He honestly didn't know if he was ready to jump into this quest. He didn't even know what the prophecy was! But if it was as bad as Reed made it out be…

Trent shook his head, cutting himself off. There was no turning back now, and he promised himself he would stick with Reed until the end. So he laid back and listened to the sounds of the road.

*.*.*.*.*

**The traffic around the airport was **insane. But that didn't seem to be a problem for Argus. He zipped through traffic in a manor that was most certainly illegal, but effective. Quinn was sure that she would here the harsh wail of a siren closing in on them from behind, but it was as if the white van was completely invisible. Argus dropped them off at their entrance. They shuffled their way to the security check. Just before they got in line, Reed leaned over to her.

"I'm pretty sure the weapons won't go over too well with the metal detector." He muttered in her ear. She sighed and pushed her glasses up.

"You're right, for once," She tapped her fingers against her thighs, her eyes narrowed to slits. "…I've got plan." She turned to the two boys and held out her hand expectantly.

"Well? Hand me your weapons," They looked bewildered for a moment, and then discreetly relinquished their weapons to her. She motioned for them to go through. They got through the metal detector without a hitch. Quinn dumped her bag onto the conveyer belt. She then stood before the Metal detector. She took a deep breath. _Please work!_

Sure enough, the scanner let out a shrill, shrieking wail. The guard stopped her with his hand.

"Stop right their miss," he grunted. "You got any metal on you?" He eyed her suspiciously. Feeling very stupid, Quinn snapped her fingers, concentrating the Mist around her, and prayed for a reaction. The sound was crisp and overly-loud. The guard's face went slack. Quinn smiled triumphantly.

"But officer, the detector didn't even go off. I don't have so much as a penny in my pockets!" She said innocently, her grey eyes large and adorable, just for good measure. The guard nodded dazedly.

"Yes…of course…how silly of me," he muttered dreamily. "Sorry, miss,"

"It's not a problem, sir. In fact, we were never even here. You should just let me through and get on with your job." The guard muttered in compliance, and stepped out of Quinn's way. Smiling sweetly, she grabbed her bag, and hurried towards the two boys. Their mouths were wide open, their eyes as big as dinner plates. She grabbed their arms and dragged them quickly away.

"Hurry, idiots. He's gonna realize sooner or later!" she hissed. Closing their dumbly gaping mouths, they followed the blonde through the throng of people. After much confusion and bickering and wrong turns, they arrived at their section. Quinn flopped down in one of the black plastic seats.

"How did you do that?" Trent asked her, still looking shocked. Quinn shrugged.

"I just controlled the mist. Annabeth showed me a couple days ago," She waved off-handedly. "No big deal."

"Well that's…convenient," Reed muttered, taking the seat next to Quinn. "So whadda we do now? Just wait?" Quinn stretched her feet out leisurely and turned to look at him, one eye brow arched.

"That's exactly what we're going to do," She told him. "Y'know, I'm usually the sour-puss around here. You're stealing my purpose." He didn't even crack a smile. Trent and Quinn exchanged worried glances. When it was up to Quinn to lighten the mood, you knew things were bad. So instead of uselessly trying to be cheerful, Quinn sat back and waited for their flight to be called.

*.*.*.*.*.*

**To sum things up, Reed** hated planes almost as much as cars. It was bad enough being strapped to a chunk of metal, but they just had to throw said chunk of metal into the _air?_ To him, planes were death traps with wings. He didn't know whether he could survive 10 hours on this thing.

He also didn't understand why he was being so pessimistic. He'd always been a pretty cheerful, care-free guy. It was like 17 and three quarters years worth of unused anger and depression was rushing at him all at once, at the worst possible time. He was supposed to be strong one now. He was leading a quest, they very thing he'd been dreaming about since he got to camp! He should've been happy. But he wasn't.

Trent had fallen asleep the moment the plane had taken off. And it wouldn't have mattered to Reed…if Trent wasn't currently drooling all over his favorite jacket. Quinn had her book back out, but an amused smirk was visible on her lips. Tentatively, Reed shifted Trent to the right. He didn't wake up, not even when he fell onto Quinn's relatively lower shoulder. Quinn nearly dropped her book as he landed on her. Her eyes narrowed, and she glared at Reed over Trent's lanky form.

"I hate you," she growled, struggling to get his auburn head off of her. Reed smirked and sat back into his seat.

The flight was long and tedious. 8 hours and ten minutes was torture for someone as ADHD as Reed. Trent woke up after about 6 hours, received a smack upside the head from Quinn, then promptly went back to sleep for another thirty minutes. It all seemed so strangely normal. Like they were just three friends going on a summer trip to another country. Like they weren't about to risk their lives for the sake of the world. Reed was ready to kiss the ground as the plain landed in Barcelona. They only had a few more hours to go. Reed didn't know if that was a good or a bad thing.

Quinn led them through the confusing layout of the airport. Nothing was in English, and it seemed no one around them spoke it. Quinn, bless her, had fortunately taken Spanish in school. She managed to find out which flight was which and where the trio should wait.

It was then, sitting in those black plastic chairs for the second time today, that the screaming started.

**DUN DUN DUN! CLIFFIE! Oh how I love cliffies**** This chapter took ages, but I like it. Sorry for mistakes. Next chapter soon! Wish me luck on my English project**

**Love,**

**TUC**


	4. When Lions Attack

**Chapter Four**

_**The Lion Attacks**_

It started out with one, small, girlish scream, before erupting into a horrible chorus of voices, all screaming for their lives in unison. They began yelling and running and grabbing their bags, calling for their family members. Small children cried. Feet stampeded the ground. Chaos didn't even begin to describe. The three questers were on their feet in an instant. What was this? A terrorist attack? Or worse, something related to _their _world?

A horrible, vicious, blood-thirsty growl ripped through the air. Silence rang for about two seconds, before the screaming started up again all at once, filled with even more fear and desperation than before. That pretty much answered that question. Quinn turned to her male companions. 

"Stay here, and try not to do anything stupid until I get back," She commanded, before slinging her bag over her shoulder and pulling herself up a tall, thin column, silently thanking Mr.D for making them scale that horrible rock wall every Monday. Now that she was above the crowds, she caught a glimpse of the monster that was attacking the airport. It was a huge, glittering mass of fur. Its claws shone like silver, and its teeth were as sharp as kitchen knives. The thing swung his lumbering paws at everything in sight, leaving a path of absolute destruction in its wake. The Nemean Lion. That wasn't exactly something Quinn expected to be in Spain.

Panic set in, and she was about to scream to Reed and Trent, when her hands slipped on the column she had scaled. Screaming a curse, she tumbled to the unforgiving floor, landing on her back with a force that knocked every wisp of air out of her lungs. Quinn sat up, dazed and breathing hard. Feet pounded all around her, closing her in and threatening to trample her to a pulp. She pulled herself to her feet and pushed frantically through the crowd, screaming at people to get out of her way. She couldn't see the two boys _anywhere._ She told them to stay where they were for this very reason!

And then finally, she caught a glimpse of Trent's tangled auburn hair towering above the crowd, then Reed's slightly shorter mop of hair a little bit ahead. Giving a murmur of thanks to whatever god in charge of tallness, she set after her two idiot friends. Most of the people in the airport had cleared out by the time she reached them, which was good. She decided she would chew Trent and Reed out later. She pulled her crossbow out of her bag (now adorned with a sparkly pink heart key chain, courtesy of Brianna. Because that just _screamed_: FEAR ME) and locked target with the Lion's eye, one of the only parts she was pretty sure was vulnerable, excluding the mouth. But her shot missed as the Lion turned, and skidded off its iron-like pelt. She cursed. The Reed was hacking furiously at the thing while Trent covered his back with his javelin and shield, not realizing their efforts were futile.

"It's the Nemean Lion, guys!" she told them. "Aim for the mouth! Or the eyes! Everything else is completely bullet-proof!" Reed let out an audible groan of annoyance as he had another close escape with the Lion's razor claws.

"You've got to be kidding me!" he muttered. Quinn rolled her eyes and shot another bolt towards the Lion's weak spot, only to have it miss by a millimeter. She cursed and ducked as the Lion's teeth snapped the space where her head had been moments before. She danced out of the way of its claws, jumping onto a large blue marble-topped desk. The claws came crashing down yet again and she rolled out of the way, just as the desk was obliterated. Things continued in this pattern all the way down the desk, before she rolled off and took off running down a moving sidewalk, her heart pounding and head reeling from all the ways the Lion could tear her to pieces. Trent and Reed were desperately trying to divert the beast's attention; Trent pulling on the beast's tufted tail, Reed hacking at its sides, both yelling insults all the while. But the Lion seemed completely locked on Quinn. Teeth snapped at her back, and she poured on the speed. Suddenly, there was a harsh tug on her hood, and she was dangling from the Lion's drooling maw.

Her heart sped up, and she thrashed violently, screaming at the big, hairy thing to let her go. Reed called her name and attacked the monster with renewed desperation, but it was no good. In a last desperate effort, she thrust her cross bow back into the Lion's ugly face. It hit home directly in its eye, and with a howl of pain from the Nemean Lion, and a shrill scream from Quinn, she was flung backwards. Before she went crashing to the floor, she managed to grab hold of something around the monster's neck. A…collar? How could that be? Before Quinn had time to ponder, she landed hard on the Lion's back, flat on her belly, so that she nearly puked. Quinn pulled herself into a sitting position, still clinging to collar.

Police sirens wailed in the distance.

They were running out of time. If they got caught by the police, they'd be done-for. A plan formed into her mind. It was time to kick some invincible butt.

"Get ready guys! I'm going to make it roar! Get the inside of its mouth!" She managed to scream, nearly biting her tongue off, the way the Lion was thrashing. Now was the harder part. Summoning all her strength, she pulled hard on the metal collar, ignoring the deep cuts it carved in her palms. Apparently, the Lion found this as uncomfortable as she did, for it reared back, which only tightened the collar, because Quinn was now dangling precariously from it. Its mouth opened in a tremendous roar, and Trent took that moment to throw his javelin. It sliced through the Lion's mouth before going straight down its throat. It hacked once, and then exploded into golden dust. Quinn, the collar, and Trent's javelin went crashing to the floor.

Groaning, Quinn pulled herself to her feet, wiping the blood off her mouth. Trent and Reed jogged up. They looked bruised and a little cut-up, but they didn't look too damaged. Trent had a nasty slash on his arm where the Lion must've caught him that might need attending. He picked up his javelin from the pile of dust. Quinn squinted. _Just _a pile of dust. Shouldn't there be a pelt?

Suddenly, the dust began to twitch, then collect. Her eyes widened, and she stumbled back in horror.

"It's reforming!" she gasped. "Out. NOW!" She grabbed their hands and dragged them down a corridor…

…To be met with Police officers. Reed cursed. They had their guns out. The gaze of the first one flickered to their weapons, before turning hard.

"_Manos en el aire__! __Caída de__las armas__!" _ Officer one barked, his gun trained on Trent's chest. The other Officers were trained on Reed and Quinn. _Hands in the air! Drop your weapons! _Quinn was almost sure they saw guns in their hands, instead of a crossbow, javelin and sword. But they needed to get themselves, and these mortals out of here. So she did the only thing she could think of. Run. She elbowed Reed and discreetly loaded a bolt in her crossbow. He seemed to understand. He whispered the plan to Trent, who nodded. The officer repeated himself, harsher this time.

"_Por supuesto, oficial." _ She said, and all three lowered their weapons, as if complying. Just as they were about to hit the floor, she swung her bow up, yelled, "Now!" and shot an bolt above the officers' heads, as Trent and Reed took off down the hall. Quinn didn't wait to see where her bolt landed. She took off after the two boys.

The Lion's head was now fully formed. He roared weakly at her as she passed. Something beside it glinted. The collar! She _had _to get it. She glanced over her shoulder. The policemen were a ways back. She could get it!

"Quinn! Come ON!" Reed shouted from ahead. Even with his messed up knee, he was freakishly fast, already way ahead of Trent.

"One sec!" she called. She veered to the right and grabbed the collar from behind the Lion's disembodied head, when the floor beside her exploded.

_They're shooting at as!_ She was utterly flabbergasted, which didn't happen often. A suitcase near her was blown back.

"Quinn! Let's go, go, _GO!" _ Trent hollered, hovering at the door. The police were catching up, guns drawn. A shot near her head brought her back to life. She jumped up and barreled towards the doors. The three of them burst out onto a cluttered street, filled with people trying to get away from the airport. At few people screamed at the sight of their "guns". Quinn scanned the area for an escape. Nothing.

Suddenly, Reed's head shot up.

"To the parking lot! I've got an idea!" he said urgently, before taking off towards the parking lot.

In a place filled with so many people, the police couldn't shoot at them, but they were gaining. Desperate to buy some time, Quinn sent a couple bolts back at them, careful to miss. They skidded to a halt. Frantically, the three poured on the speed.

The trio threw themselves behind a fancy car near the back of the lot. The policemen were still at the front. That bought them some time, but Quinn still had no idea what Reed was planning.

Until he sent his sword through the window. It smashed into oblivion. Quinn gave him a reproachful look. He grinned in response.

"I could've picked the lock," he said, shrugging, "But I've always wanted to do that."

Quinn smacked his head.

"Just hurry!"

He nodded, and carefully stuck his hand in the window, careful of the glass. The doors unlocked. He climbed into the driver's seat, and turned to Trent.

"I need a screw driver and some wire-cutters." Trent's ears turned pink.

"Why do you assume I have—"

Reed gave him a look. Trent bit his lip and handed the tools over. Reed cracked up.

"Shut up," Trent muttered, stuffing his hands in his pockets, looking away. Reed swallowed his laughter and began to work.

About thirty seconds later, the car was running.

"Yes!" Reed fist-pumped. "Thank you, Howcast!"

The police were getting closer. Quinn pushed Trent in, and buckled up, slamming the door.

"Just drive!"

Reed paled. He looked light a deer in head lights.

"D-drive? Uh…" For a second, Quinn thought she saw genuine fear in his eyes. Something in Trent's face flickered and he muttered something that sounded like, "of course!"

"I'll drive. Scoot, man," Reed scooted over warily, and Trent climbed into the driver's seat. A bullet went through the windshield. Quinn squeaked and yelled at him to drive. He floored the engine.

The people gave them a wide berth, and man could this car go _fast. _They barreled down the streets, taking random turns whenever they could. But Quinn knew they couldn't keep this up for long. The police would catch up. They would crash. Something. An idea began to form in her mind. It was dangerous and stupid, but it was better than nothing.

Trent had managed to get them all the way to the countryside, the police on there tail all the while. A shallow trench lined the dirt road, and they were about to turn a corner, and some woods were a little ahead. The police were pretty far behind. If they could just…

Quinn shouted her plan to Trent, who thought she was crazy, but complied. He managed to rouse Reed from his state of paralyzing fear, and he dazedly agreed. She would figure that out later.

The corner was approaching. Scooting all the way over so she was pressed against the window, she counted down the seconds.

"One, two, three- NOW!"

And with that, they all swallowed their fear, flung open their car doors, and tumbled out onto the dirt path.

**TODAAAAA! IT IS DONE. AT LAST. I apologize for its short length, but an update's an update, and I felt the need to end it there. But I fail at actionD: I got the SoN on the 3****rd**** and finished it by the 4****th****, in Math. It was painfully good, and ended in the most devious cliffie EVER. …Kinda like this only ten times worse XD. Anyway, I apologize for any wrong facts. **

**Till next time,**

**~TUC (with love:D)**


	5. Trapped in Barcelona

**Chapter Five**

_**Trapped**_

**Reed hadn't really thought the whole** "let's hotwire a car!" thing through. Sure they were desperate, and they would've been toast otherwise, but Reed didn't really care. He hated cars more than he hated planes. He was nearly sick with relief when Trent offered to drive, and by the look Quinn gave him, he was going to have some explaining to do. But for now he was too busy cowering in the passenger's seat, white with fear. _Screw dignity._

And then Quinn had shouted her ridiculous plan, and his first thought was _YES! OUT OF THIS DEATH TRAP,_ which quickly led to _HOLY CRAP I HAVE TO JUMP OUT OF THIS CAR. _And that didn't really do wonders for his stupid flashbacks. But he sucked it up and threw open the car door when Quinn yelled that sadistic number, and tumbled out onto the road. And because life seems to hate him so, he landed right on his injured shoulder.

Somewhere, the Fates were laughing their asses off.

His whole body exploded with pain as he rolled into the trench. He landed flat on his back, watching the sky above swirl with black and yellow spots. His brain felt fried, and a shark seemed to be gnawing mercilessly on his shoulder. He heard his friends calling his name, and hardly registered a horrible, familiar crashing sound as the world faded to black.

*.*.*.*.*

When he awoke, he was lying on his back on something soft, and his mouth tasted sweet. His whole body ached, throbbing with a horrible intensity. He opened his eyes to a blurry, colorful world, trying to put together his jumbled thoughts. Where was he? What truck hit him?

"Look, he's awake," a familiar voice announced, clearly female.

"Thank the gods," another breathed, this time male. Groaning, he turned his head towards the speakers, squinting through the fuzz in the way of his already lopsided sight. He struggled to sit up, only to be gently pushed down.

"Stay there," the female voice commanded. "You're still hurt. The wound _opened up. _It was kind of horrifying."

"Quinn's right, dude. We were nearly in the woods by the time we realized you weren't there. We nearly got caught, and at first we thought you were dead." His good eye focused on two figures leaning over him. _Trent and Quinn. _

"…Did I jump into oncoming traffic or something?" he muttered, his tongue feeling thick and sluggish.

Quinn's mouth quirked. "Something like that," She told him. "Anyway, you can rest for a little while longer. We're staying in the forest till tomorrow. Then we've got to figure out a way out of Spain to Turkey." She picked up a plain orange notebook from beside her.

"No more planes…" he muttered, struggling upright. "…Ever again."

Quinn glared at him for a moment, looking like she wanted to shove him back down again, but she let it slide. "Y'know, for once I agree with you. And seeing as Reed has some issues, I guess cars are a no too." She raised a questioning eyebrow at him, her face infuriatingly void of sympathy. Reed winced.

"About that…" But she held up a hand, cutting him off.

"I get it. Honestly, I'd feel that way too," she shrugged. "I'm not really interested in a heart to heart, anyway. Now, about transportation…" She tapped her chin with the tip of her pen, a strange gleam in her eyes. "Any ideas?"

*.*.*.*

Three hours, a bag of chips, a square of ambrosia and a headache later, they still had absolutely nothing. They were completely stuck in Spain, with no way out.

"I still don't see why we can't go by boat," Quinn muttered. Reed bristled.

"You of all people should know!"

"We were five, Reed. Get over it."

"You pushed me off the pier! I almost drowned!"

"There was a spider on your face."

"So you pushed me off the pier? Besides, going by boat is way to slow."

"That's not the point!"

Trent sighed, exhausted by his friends. They had been bickering non-stop about everything, and it was driving him nuts. They were on a quest, and here the three of them were, acting as if this was nothing more than a sleepover. Sure, he was glad Reed was back to normal, but this wasn't the best time to be so light-hearted.

"Maybe we should go into town," Trent suggested, grasping for anything to stop their fighting. "See what's there."

"That's stu-" Quinn stopped suddenly, her eyes brightening. "Wait a minute…"

"What?" Reed and Trent piped up at the same time, puzzled and a bit frightened by the look on her face.

"At the airport, there was a guy next to us with a newspaper…" she trailed off, her grey eyes far away, deep in thought. "One of the articles…I wonder…"

"Well then, it's decided. The two of you are going into town," Reed announced, putting his hands behind his head and laying down. "Glad that's over."

The two in question turned to look at him, confused. "What about you?"

Reed sat up and pointed at the right side of his face. "The police'll recognize me in a second. My scars were probably the first thing they took note of." He examined them, narrowing his eyes. "But you two can easily be disguised."

"But…" Quinn's face scrunched with frustration. Since when was Reed right? "We can't leave you here alone. You're injured." Trent nodded forcefully. How could they leave him alone with his shoulder like that?

But Reed just scoffed. "Pfft, I've still got my rather large, rather pointy sword," he flashed them a convincing grin. "Besides, the ambrosia really helped," he rotated his shoulder for good measure. "See? Perfectly fine."

Quinn and Trent shared a look, unconvinced. Reed was known for not making a big deal out his own feelings. For all they knew, he could be on the verge of passing out and still hold up that cheerful smile and cheesy jokes.

"Oh _come on. _I'm not helpless," he glared at them hard, and they had no choice but to comply.

Trent had a feeling they were making a big mistake.

*.*.*.*.*

"…This is ridiculous. I _look _ridiculous," Quinn pouted, arms crossed like a small child. In fact, she looked about twelve, with Reed's sweatshirt practically swallowing her, her glasses gone and her hair done in two braids. Trent's own disguise was just as effective, yet much simpler. He had traded his dirty, torn jacket for a black sweatshirt he had brought as a spare, pulled the hood up and threw on a pair of sunglasses Quinn had thankfully packed.

"But it works," He reminded her. "No one's screamed yet."

She glared at him, her ridiculous braids bouncing as she walked. "Whatever," she sniffed, and Trent knew she agreed with him.

They walked through the streets, acting like they were a normal set of siblings out for a normal family outing. But he could see Quinn scanning every corner, every face of every person, every stand set up on the side of the road. Trent found himself doing the same.

They found a newsstand next to a small bakery. Quinn slapped some money on the counter, and grabbed a newspaper from the stand. She scanned it quickly.

"Wow…there was a huge earthquake in Turkey a little while ago…" she muttered. "Do you think…?"

"Gaea," Trent confirmed nodding, fingering the zipper of his sweatshirt. "We've got to hurry."

"Yeah…" She turned the page, and her eyes lit up. "Ah! Here we are. 'Strange Winged Horse Spotted In Barcelona.'"

*.*.*.*

The forest was eerily quiet.

Reed stood, shaking grass from his jeans, raising his sword. He winced as his shoulder screamed in protest. He was in a little more pain then he had let on.

Suddenly, the bushes began to tremble, throwing leaves into the air. There was a snort, like an animal, and a soft _clip_-_clop_. Reed swallowed and inched forward, his body rigid and tense, ready for a fight.

The creature burst out of the foliage. Reed's breath left his throat and he stumbled back, sword clattering to the ground.

"Holy _crap!"_

**THIS. TOOK. SO. LONG. I don't particularly like this chapter, but I need to get it out. NEXT CHAPTER SHALL BE LONG AND GOOD AND ACTIONY AND STUFF.**

**~TUC~**


	6. Flying animals and handcuffs

**Chapter Six**

_**Finally, we're moving**_

Quinn flew through the forest, newspaper clasped triumphantly in her hands, Trent panting and stumbling at her heels. But she wasn't slowing down, determined to get back to Reed as soon as possible. Who knows what the idiot could have blown up in the time they were gone?

Quinn vaulted into the clearing in the clearing, Trent halting ungracefully at her side. Scanning the stretch of grass, she noticed their bedrolls, belongings and remains of a fire were still there, but scattered. Not only that, but one crucial factor was missing.

Reed.

Trent and Quinn exchanged a worried look.

"Reed?" Trent called hesitantly. They both held their breath, waiting for something, anything. Even a cry for help would have been a relief.

But there was nothing but the wind whistling through the trees lining the clearing. Quinn cursed, pushing past Trent to inspect the clearing.

"…There's…there's some flattened grass here," she observed, waving Trent towards her shoulder. "About…about Reed's size. Looks like there was some sort of a struggle and…" she trailed off, her eyes widening at the stain smeared on the grass. "Blood," she muttered, hands dropping to her sides. "There's blood on the freaking grass…"

"What?" Trent rushed to her side, only to trip over something in the grass. He rubbed his chin where he smacked it on the ground and picked up the offending object. It was a sword. Reed's sword, ever-so-slightly bent out of shape. "Here's his sword…" he clenched his teeth and threw the sword on the ground, stomping his foot. "Dammit! I _knew_ we shouldn't have left him alone! I _knew!_ And…and now-"

"Just shut up for a second!" Quinn hissed, cutting him off. She put her head in her hands. "Gods, if anything happened…" She muttered. She lifted her head and glared at Trent. "We've got to make up a plan—"

Suddenly, a loud, delighted shout rang in their ears, causing them both to jump out of their skin. A large, blurry white shape swooped down at a blinding speed, landing on the grass with an impossibly graceful _clop._ The creature was beautiful to say the least, an enormous, shining white stallion, its head held cocky and proud. Stretching for an impossibly long distance and wings shimmered a thousand different unidentifiable colors at its sides. Its hooves were solid gold, and its mane seemed to be made of spun silver. And there, perched on its back, was…was…

"Hey guys! You'll never believe what I found!"

*.*.*.*.*.*.*

"So…you're telling me that the _original _Pegasus came all the way down from Olympus _just_ to take us from Spain to Turkey?"

"Um…I don't know about that, but I think he's willing to help us out,"

"You _think?"_

"He's a hors—ow, ow, okay fine!- _pegasus, _Quinn. Last I checked, horses-ahem, _pegasi_- don't talk."

"So, for all we know, he could be one of Gaia's evil minions, and ready to fly us to our doom. And the camp's doom. And the world's doom."

Pegasus snorted and looked offended, tossing his mane and stomping his hooves. Reed rolled his eyes and blew a stand of hair out of his face.

"Wow, way to be optimistic." Reed muttered, getting up and making his way towards Pegasus. "Besides, does this look like the face of an evil minion?" He hugged Pegasus's giant leg, and grinned. Pegasus swung his head towards Quinn, looking every bit an innocent angel. Quinn scoffed, unconvinced.

"Oh c'mon, Quinn," Trent piped up. "It's the only way we're going to get anywhere. And wasn't Reed flying him the whole time we were gone? He could've killed Reed any moment he wanted to. Either he's friendly, or that horse is one damn good actor." Trent patted Pegasus on his side. Pegasus turned and glared murderously at the ginger, snorting his face. Trent whimpered and flinched away. "On second thought…" he squeaked.

Quinn smirked, the kind of smirk that let you know she was probably about to say something mean and/or sarcastic. "Well," she started, looking impressed. "He seems to have a very rational dislike of Trent. Maybe the magical horse isn't so bad after all."

"Ha ha, very funny, Quinn." Trent muttered, inching back up towards them "No really, you're hilarious. Now can we stop picking on me and just get out of here? The police are bound to be here soon."

No sooner that the words were out of his mouth, shrill sirens blared to life across the forest. Footsteps thudded through the forest nearby. Dangerously nearby. Loud, shouted Spanish was heard, nearly right on top of them. Quinn cursed, shoving Trent towards the Pegasus.

"Idiot! Get on!" Policemen were popping through the foliage now, at the other side of the clearing. Together, Quinn and Reed hoisted Trent up onto the Pegasus, cursing and struggling. The police were much closer now, shouting at them to freeze. Trent clawed his way onto the Pegasus's back at last, and sat up. Reed turned to Quinn, kneeling down and holding out his locked hands.

"Go!" He hissed, shaking his hands for emphasis. "Up!"

Quinn stared for a moment, and then took a quick look behind her, before slowly shaking her head. "No," She said simply, folding her arms and setting her jaw. "You're going first."

"What?" Reed sputtered, incredulous. "Quinn, you're being ridiculous. We don't have time to argue—"

"Exactly," She said briskly. "So don't. You're going first and that's final." She kneeled and locked her hands, same as his. They had a momentary stare down, bright blue to stormy grey. Reed could tell by the look in her eyes that 1) she had a plan concocted, and 2) she wasn't backing down. He gave a resigned sigh and hoped he wouldn't regret this.

"Alright, fine. But it would've been easier for me to just pull you up. Look at you, you're a shrimp!" He smirked and ducked as she aimed a smack at his head, and put his foot in her locked hands, grabbing Trent's outstretched one. With much difficulty, Reed pulled himself up onto the Pegasus's back. The police were practically on top of them at this point. Reed cursed as they raised their guns, marching in towards them. He frantically reached down a hand towards Quinn, and she jumped up the grab it. But it was far too late. An officer broke away from the group and grabbed Quinn's other hand, yanking her down and roughly pinning her hands behind her back. The others pointed their guns at Trent and Reed, shouting in Spanish that neither of them understood.

"Quinn!" Reed roared. He lurched forwards; ready to leap off the horse and fight the police off, despite their guns and the way he was outnumbered. But before the message to jump could even reach his brain, Quinn shot out with her foot, sending a sharp blow to the Pegasus's leg. He reared back with a thunderous cry, zipping off as Reed and Trent screamed and Quinn was hand-cuffed. They were gone within seconds, Pegasus running at breakneck speed, before whooshing into the air.

"Dammit!" Reed roared, regaining his balance. "She knew! She knew and she let me go first so that she would be the one arrested." He shouted a much stronger curse to the wind and pounded on the Pegasus's back. "Turn back around!"

The flying horse ignored him, keeping his blinding pace forward. Reed gave a frustrated grunt and kicked the horse's side furiously.

"_Turn around, dammit!" _he screamed at it, once again. "You stupid horse! We can't leave her behind!"

Pegasus gave and angry snort and lurched violently to once side, nearly throwing both passengers into nothingness. Trent righted himself with difficulty and turned to glare at his clearly distressed and furious friend.

"Calm down! You offend him and we die! And what good would that do Quinn?" He shouted over the wind. "Besides, she was just arrested. It's not like she's dead or anything."

Reed glared at the back of Trent's ginger head, fighting the urge to smack him. "How the hell are we supposed to rescue her? _She's _the one with all the plans! And we can't even attempt if this idiot animal _won't turn back around!" _

Pegasus lurched forwards this time, sending them crashing together. Trent peeled his forehead off the Pegasus's thick neck and elbowed Reed back.

"Stop insulting him, dumbass! We can't help Quinn dead either! Calm down and think rationally!"

Reed winced, rubbing his head where he had smacked it into Trent's spine. "Calm down? I'm perfectly calm! Nevermind the fact that the person we're so incredibly screwed without is now in the custody of the Barcelona police! Why don't we just land and have a nice cup of tea?" He put his face in his hands, and took a deep breath. Trent gave his friend an incredulous look.

"We're on a quest to our deaths, without Quinn, and you still find the time to be sarcastic?"

"Trent!"

"Right, right, sorry. Too soon," he bit his lip and looked forward. "Look, Quinn's smart, okay? She's clever enough to escape, even if we can't get to her."

Reed glared off at the clouds rushing by. "It's not her I'm worried about, so much," he muttered. "It's us that's screwed."

**Ack okay I'm back from the dead. Hello. Enjoy the chapter. More to come. Er…yeah. Oh, and thanks to the lovely Night-Faery, for beta-ing this for me :D **

**~TUC**


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